tarantula

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tarantula

/təˈɹæn.t͡ʃʊ.lə/ UK
/təˈɹæn.t͡ʃə.lə/ US

Where it comes from

From Medieval Latin tarantula, from Old Italian tarantola, from Taranto (“seaport in southern Italy”), from Latin Tarentum (“Latin name of the town”), from Ancient Greek Τάρᾱς (Tárās, “Greek name of the town”), genitive Τᾰ́ρᾰντος; compare Modern Greek Τάραντας (Tárantas) and Tarantino Tarde. probably from Illyrian *darandos (“oak”).

Sense 3 (“Lycosa tarantula”) is the original sense of the word, and refers to the fact that the spider was common in the Apulia region where Taranto is located. Sense 1 (“New World spider in the family Theraphosidae”), the main modern sense of the word, may have been a transferred use of Spanish tarántula (“tarantula (Lycosa tarantula)”) to describe large, hairy spiders found in the New World.

noun tarantulas · tarantulae · tarentula

Any of the large, hairy, mostly New World spiders comprising the family Theraphosidae. Cockroaches, centipedes, tarantulas, scorpions, and mosquitoes are abundant in summer. [...] Tarantulas and scorpions are little noticed by those who have been there any length of time.
Similar: bird spider, monkey spider, rain spider
broadly A member of certain other groups of spiders, generally characterized by large size, hairiness, or membership of infraorder Mygalomorphae to which Theraphosidae family also belongs. The small funnel-web tarantulas are sedentary but notable for their aggressiveness and the strong action of their venom on human beings. A. robustus and formidabilis have caused human deaths.
dated A species of wolf spider, Lycosa tarantula, native to southern Europe, the mildly poisonous bite of which was once thought to cause an extreme urge to dance (tarantism). [I]t is better to be pained with the ſting of a Snake, and recouer, then be tickled with the venime of Tarantula and dye laughing: [...]

Translations

Every language

noun spider of the family Theraphosidae

Español	tarántula
日本語	大土蜘蛛 ōtsuchigumo
中文	捕鳥蛛 /捕鸟蛛 bǔniǎozhū
Kiswahili	bui
Português	tarântula
Français	tarentule, mygale
Deutsch	Vogelspinne
Italiano	tarantola
Ελληνικά	ταραντούλα tarantoúla
Română	tarantulă
Русский	пау́к-птицее́д paúk-pticejéd, пау́к-птицея́д paúk-pticejád
العربية	رُتَيْل rutayl
עברית	טָרַנְטוּלָה ṭāranṭūlā́

noun wolf spider of the species Lycosa tarantula

Español	tarántula
日本語	子守蜘蛛 komorigumo, タランチュラ taranchura
中文	狼蜘蛛 lángzhīzhū
Português	aranha-lobo
Français	tarentule, mygale
Deutsch	Tarantel
Italiano	tarantola
Ελληνικά	ταραντούλα tarantoúla
Русский	тара́нтул tarántul, мизги́рь mizgírʹ
العربية	رُتَيْل rutayl

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Cite this

MLA

"tarantula." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tarantula. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

tarantula. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tarantula

Chicago

"tarantula." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tarantula.

BibTeX

@misc{tarantula_2026,
  title = {tarantula},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tarantula},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}